Iraq war victims allege pharmaceutical companies' bribery led to U.S. Troop deaths. The families of dozens of U.S. Troops killed or injured during the war in Iraq filed a federal lawsuit Tuesday against several U.S. And European pharmaceutical and medical supply companies, alleging that the corporations knowingly financed the anti-American militia Mahdi Army through bribes and kickbacks to officials at a government ministry controlled by the group. The lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., against some of the biggest names in the industry - including GE Healthcare, Johnson & Johnson, Pfizer, AstraZeneca and Roche - claims that the companies regularly paid kickbacks to officials in Iraq's Ministry of Health through their local agents. Representatives from companies named in the lawsuit did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Ref. USAToday.
President Trump makes surprise visit to U.S. Troops in Iraq in his first trip to a combat zone. President Donald Trump touched down in Iraq late Wednesday for an unannounced visit with U.S. Troops, marking his first encounter with soldiers serving under his command in a combat zone. Trump's journey, cloaked in secrecy until he arrived, comes as he is weighing a major reduction in forces in the 17-year-old conflict in Afghanistan and also during a shakeup in the top rungs of military leadership. Ref. USAToday.
While I wouldn't doubt it was all about a power show I don't think it was just that and may have been a sum of many things including the oil and contracts to follow.
International Level: Activist / Political Participation: 28 2.8%
State Department orders non-essential staff to leave Iraq amid escalating tensions with Iran. The State Department mandated that all non-emergency government staff leave the country Wednesday after Washington last week said it detected new and urgent "Credible" threats from Iran and its proxy forces in the region targeting Americans and U.S. Interests. Ref. USAToday.
Iraqi supporters of Iran-backed militia attack US Embassy in Baghdad. Dozens of angry Iraqi Shiite militia supporters broke into the compound on Tuesday after smashing a main door and setting fire to a reception area, prompting tear gas and sounds of gunfire, the Associated Press reports. An AP reporter at the scene saw flames rising from inside the compound and at least three U.S. Soldiers on the roof of the main building inside the embassy. The attack followed deadly U.S. Airstrikes on Sunday that killed 25 fighters of the Iran-backed militia in Iraq, the Kataeb Hezbollah. Ref. USAToday.